Background info:
In the Northern hemisphere, spring is slowly on its way, sprouting its first green buds and gradually making way for new life…
This season brings to mind the question, What are we cultivating in our lives? Are we watering the seeds or the weeds in our own gardens? Moreover, are we even aware of our present experience, unfolding moment-by-moment, or do we get lost in our own minds, rushing through life on autopilot and missing out lives one moment at a time?
On average, we spend almost 50% away from ‘the here and now’. Research shows that being “lost in thought” in this way (even when pleasantly daydreaming!) generates unhappiness, exacerbates our stress levels, and the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Mindfulness encourages us to be present with each moment of our lives and ourselves, exactly as we are, with greater kindness, acceptance and compassion. It helps us to find the space to pause, breathe and simply be alive, a need we too often ignore in the busyness of our daily lives.
This May in Berlin, Open Your Heart Mindfulness Meditation will be offering an 8-wekk MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) programme, an excellent way to get into practicing mindfulness more regularly as well as learning new strategies for managing responses to stress.
Taught in English, the classes will run on Sunday afternoons between May 7th and July 9th, with an additional all day session on June 24th. Apart from attending classes, taking an MBSR programme involves a commitment to daily home work of up to an hour.
It’s a serious commitment, but it pays off:
MBSR was founded at the University of Massachusetts Medical School by Jon Kabat-Zinn in 1979 and is now being taught all over the world with amazing results. It’s one of the best researched mindfulness based courses with proven effects of decreasing levels of perceived stress, as well as symptoms of anxiety and depression. Research also shows that even after 8 weeks of regular MBSR meditation practice the brain starts to change, showing changes in centers connected to memory, sense of self, empathy, anxiety and stress.
Spaces are limited and pre-registering and orientation a requirement.
Prices:
Early bird: 250€ per person (bookings made prior to April 9th 18:00)
Regular: 280€ per person (bookings made after April 9th and up till May 1st, 2017)
The price includes classes for the entire 8 weeks, the all-day session, as well as handouts and guided meditations.
!! Registrations close by 18:00 on May 1st 2017
Where
Körper Raum Mitte, Neue Jakobstr. 1-3, 10179 Berlin
When:
Week 1: Sunday May 7th 16:00-19:00
Week 2: Sunday May 14th 16:00-18:30
Week 3: Sunday May 21st 16:00-18:30
Week 4: Sunday May 28th 16:00-18:30
Week 5: Sunday June 11th 16:00-18:30
Week 6: Sunday June 18th 16:00-18:30
Week 7: Sunday July 2nd 16:00-18:30
Week 8: Sunday July 9th 16:00-19:00
All-day session: Saturday June 24th 10:00-16:00

Bookings and further information:
Bookings are made by email to signeglahn@hotmail.com or hello@themeganspencer.com